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FAST DESIGNER INTERVIEW: VITA

Today we're featuring the first of several interviews with FAST student designers. While the show isn't for a few more weeks, we thought we'd post one today for kicks!

/VITA NEWSTETTER/

1. Why did you choose to participate in the Fast fashion show?

I’ve been sewing since I was 10 and I taught
myself to sew on a really janky, old sewing machine. I’ve been slowly
progressing and getting better but I’ve never put in a concerted, long term
effort where I’ve sat down and made a bunch of things all at once. It’s been a
very meandering process and so I heard about the event last year and then I
just thought, why not? It’s a great excuse to make a bunch of things for yourself,
well not for me to wear—but maybe—but it’s just a good experiment to have a big
project and stick with it. It’s 8 to 12 pieces and you have to make them. I figured this is a really low stakes place. I
feel like there’s a good community of people where no one’s trying to judge me
or vet me or hire me or whatever. It’s just a space where I can experiment.
Like there’s this skirt or jacket I’ve always wanted to make and I can do
anything.

2. How did you first come about designing and making clothing? What were your inspirations?

I like to collect used clothes. I have 185
dresses. I really like having clothing where no one walks up to me and says,
“Oh, I tried on that shirt at Urban Outfitters”, y’know? I like it to be very
ambiguous where things come from, so whether that means they’re super plain
and normal or there super weird and practically unwearable. Both of those things
are what I like to make: very normal, well structured, tailored things and then
really wonky, all over the place, colorful stuff, and that was just conducive to
sewing my own things. And I just like to make things in general, I’ve always
liked to make things.

3. What inspired your collection in the show?

I guess I was thinking a lot about how, when you
look at runway shows, they’re cohesive to some extent: the fabric, the concept,
or the styling of the models, or how the models look—usually how the models
look--and I wanted to just not do that. I guess I understand what it
does to have a cohesive collection, it can be really great, but I also just
wanted to be like…well why not? Why not make something where none of it goes
together and purposely make it so each thing is totally different? None of the models look alike, they’re all different heights. All my fabric is from
junk stores so none of it goes together. They’re all scrap pieces that I’ve
been collecting and yea, I just wanted it to as non-cohesive as possible and so
I’ll see how that comes together.

4. What would you describe your collection as?

Uhm, it’s very colorful, it’s a lot of matching
pieces. Like I do a lot of this skirt matches the jacket matches the shirt
matches the headband. I like lots of different things together. It has a lot of
jumpsuits and some colorful BDSM styles going on. I have a lot of grommets and lace
up things. But it’s all colorful, black is great, but color’s so much more fun.
Im really inspired by the fabric, like I said, it’s all from junk stores. I
have a plastic, clear beach ball that I’m melting into a dress and I have some
equestrian themed things and ABC corduroy, and just all sorts of weird fabrics.

5. Who's your style icon?

Susie Bubble, I love her. Her real name is Susie
Lao and she's a style blogger from London and her blog is called Style Bubble.
She is brilliant and writes about fashion brilliantly and she also puts things
together in the most non-pretentious, creative, out there way. So she’s not
like, “Oh look at me, I’m so on trend” but she just puts everything on top of
each other and each day is a total masterpiece and it never matches but it’s
really thought through and she knows about fashion more than anyone else and so, I love her.

6. What kind have music have you been digging lately?

I listen to a lot of R&B and funk. I think that lately I’ve also been digging things like Chibo Matto and Portishead. I don’t
know what the genre is but like really dark, punk, R&B feelings.

7. Describe one of your go to outfits?

My go to outfits are severe color blocking. Like
a bright yellow sweater, bright orange pants, bright green shoes, and a bright
red coat with red lipstick and a hairpiece. I also have a collection of my go
to rainbow dresses where they immediately have every color of the rainbow in
them, so I have about 7 or 8 of those that are definitely go to outfits because
they’re easy and beautiful.

8. What's a staple piece everyone should have in their closets?

I think everyone should have a fabulous winter
coat. I really like coats. I have about 10 in LA and it’s not even cold here so
that’s embarrassing but I wear them because I’m always cold. I just got
this Armani, pink wool, XXXL, giant coat for seven dollars and it’s amazing. So
huge statement coats, even if it's tailored and black, as long as it’s making a
statement.

9. Tell me some of your favorite movies and why.

My two favorite movies are Heathers and Brazil.
I like them because they’re very dark but also really funny. The visuals and
fashion is amazing in Heathers, whoever directed or did the photography is
awesome. The Terry Gilliam film (Brazil) is super long, super creepy, but
really beautiful and funny.

10. What are some of your other hobbies?

I make things. I like art a lot. I spin yarn and
I like to knit and I like coding and making projects.

11. Where do you want to be in the next 10 years?

I want to be in New York doing creative
consulting in some way. I’m interested in translating mediums, taking one
medium into another. Possibly film work, publishing, coding, and interactivity...so something creative in New York.

Make sure to check out the Fast Fashion Show on May 22 and Vita's funky collection!